Information processor, information processing method, and computer-readable recording medium, and information processing system

ABSTRACT

An information processor includes a course evaluation unit, a display controller, and a guidance course setting unit. The course evaluation unit calculates course evaluation points based on a predetermined evaluation criterion, with respect to a course serially coupled and created between a starting point, one or more via-points, and a destination point. The display controller provides display of the course and an indicator of the course evaluation points on the same screen. The guidance course setting unit sets the course displayed on the screen as a course for route guidance on the basis of an operation by a user.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from Japanese Patent Application No.2019-157228, filed on Aug. 29, 2019, the entire contents of which arehereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

The technology relates to an information processor, an informationprocessing method, a computer-readable recording medium, and aninformation processing system. Specifically, the technology relates toroute guidance techniques for vehicle travel.

On-vehicle navigation devices have come in wide use. They offer aproposed route on a map, in response to an input of, for example, astarting point and a destination point. They also provide route guidanceon travel.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication (JP-A) No.2004-212160 describes a technique regarding a navigation device thatsearches routes in accordance with a driver's various requests.

SUMMARY

An aspect of the technology provides an information processor includinga course evaluation unit, a display controller, and a guidance coursesetting unit. The course evaluation unit is configured to calculatecourse evaluation points based on a predetermined evaluation criterion,with respect to a course serially coupled and created between a startingpoint, one or more via-points, and a destination point. The displaycontroller is configured to provide display of the course and anindicator of the course evaluation points on a same screen. The guidancecourse setting unit is configured to set the course displayed on thescreen as a course for route guidance on the basis of an operation by auser.

An aspect of the technology provides an information processing methodincluding: calculating course evaluation points based on a predeterminedevaluation criterion, with respect to a course serially coupled andcreated between a starting point, one or more via-points, and adestination point; providing display of the course and an indicator ofthe course evaluation points on a same screen; and setting the coursedisplayed on the screen as a course for route guidance on the basis ofan operation by a user.

An aspect of the technology provides a computer-readable recordingmedium containing a program. The program causes, when executed by acomputer, the computer to implement a method, the method including:calculating course evaluation points based on a predetermined evaluationcriterion, with respect to a course serially coupled and created betweena starting point, one or more via-points, and a destination point;providing display of the course and an indicator of the courseevaluation points on a same screen; and setting the course displayed onthe screen as a course for route guidance on the basis of an operationby a user.

An aspect of the technology provides an information processing systemincluding a server device and a display device. The server deviceincludes a course evaluation unit and a transmission unit. The courseevaluation unit is configured to calculate course evaluation pointsbased on a predetermined evaluation criterion, with respect to a courseserially coupled and created between a starting point, one or morevia-points, and a destination point. The transmission unit is configuredto transmit, to the display device, information regarding the course andinformation regarding the course evaluation points. The display deviceincludes a display controller and a guidance course setting unit. Thedisplay controller is configured to provide display of the course and anindicator of the course evaluation points on a screen, on the basis ofthe information transmitted by the transmission unit. The guidancecourse setting unit is configured to set the course displayed on thescreen as a course for route guidance on the basis of an operation by auser.

An aspect of the technology provides an information processor includingcircuitry. The circuitry is configured to calculate course evaluationpoints based on a predetermined evaluation criterion, with respect to acourse serially coupled and created between a starting point, one ormore via-points, and a destination point. The circuitry is configured toprovide display of the course and an indicator of the course evaluationpoints on a same screen. The circuitry is configured to set the coursedisplayed on the screen as a course for route guidance on the basis ofan operation by a user.

An aspect of the technology provides an information processing systemincluding a server device and a display device. The server deviceincludes first circuitry and a transmission unit. The first circuitry isconfigured to calculate course evaluation points based on apredetermined evaluation criterion, with respect to a course seriallycoupled and created between a starting point, one or more via-points,and a destination point. The transmission unit is configured totransmit, to the display device, information regarding the course andinformation regarding the course evaluation points. The display deviceincludes second circuitry. The second circuitry is configured to providedisplay of the course and an indicator of the course evaluation pointson a screen, on the basis of the information transmitted by thetransmission unit. The second circuitry is configured to set the coursedisplayed on the screen as a course for route guidance on the basis ofan operation by a user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the disclosure, and are incorporated in and constitutea part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments and,together with the specification, serve to explain the principles of thedisclosure.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of definitions of terms used in thisspecification.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a configuration example of an informationprocessor according to an example embodiment of the technology.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a CPU of the information processoraccording to a first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a specific example of a procedure ofprocessing to be executed by the CPU according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating, together with FIG. 4, the specificexample of the procedure of the processing to be executed by the CPUaccording to the first embodiment.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are charts of contents of information in an evaluationinformation database according to the example embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a chart of contents of information in a requisite spotdatabase according to the example embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram of a visualized example of extraction of a requisitespot from a course.

FIG. 9 is a diagram of an example of a confirmation display screenaccording to the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a CPU of the information processoraccording to a second embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram of an example of a confirmation display screenaccording to the second embodiment.

FIGS. 12A to 12C are diagrams of examples of screen transitions of theconfirmation display screen, with a discovery gain changed.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating a specific example of a procedure ofprocessing to be executed by the CPU according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating, together with FIG. 13, the specificexample of the procedure of the processing to be executed by the CPUaccording to the second embodiment.

FIGS. 15A and 15B are diagrams of examples of screen transitionsregarding via-point customization.

FIGS. 16A to 16C are diagrams illustrating, together with FIGS. 15A and15B, examples of the screen transitions regarding the via-pointcustomization.

FIG. 17 is a diagram of an example of selection of a guide courseaccording to a modification example.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Existing navigation devices create a course as a path from a startingpoint to a destination point. They generally tend to create anefficiency-oriented course, e.g., a course having a distance as short aspossible to the destination point, and a course it takes as short timeas possible to reach the destination point.

Meanwhile, there are also calls for non-efficiency-oriented coursecreation to a destination point, to make it possible to create anappropriate path for a drive based on a predetermined evaluationcriterion such as joy of travel and fine scenery.

It is desirable to provide an information processor, an informationprocessing method, a computer-readable recording medium, and aninformation processing system that make it possible to allow a user toappropriately designate a course having desired evaluation points, as aproposed course for route guidance, from a starting point to adestination point through one or more via-points.

In the following, some preferred but non-limiting embodiments of thetechnology are described in detail with reference to the accompanyingdrawings. Note that the following description is directed toillustrative examples of the disclosure and not to be construed aslimiting to the technology. In each of the drawings referred to in thefollowing description, elements have different scales in order toillustrate the respective elements with sizes recognizable in thedrawings. Therefore, factors including, without limitation, the numberof each of the elements, the shape of each of the elements, a size ofeach of the elements, a dimension of each of the elements, a material ofeach of the elements, a ratio between the elements, relative positionalrelationship between the elements, and any other specific numericalvalue are illustrative only and not to be construed as limiting to thetechnology. Further, elements in the following example embodiments whichare not recited in a most-generic independent claim of the disclosureare optional and may be provided on an as-needed basis. Throughout thespecification and the drawings, elements having substantially the samefunction and configuration are denoted with the same referencecharacters to avoid redundant description, and elements not in directrelation to the technology may not be illustrated.

Definitions of Terms

First, with reference to FIG. 1, definitions are given of terms to beused hereinbelow.

A “course” refers to a whole path from a starting point of routeguidance to a destination point, i.e., a goal point. Route guidanceincludes setting a course in accordance with an input of the startingpoint and the destination point.

A “via-point” is a generic name of places to stop by and places to passthrough on the course. Such places may include a “stop-by spot” and a“nice-moment place”. Course creation may include setting informationindicating a sequence of passing through via-points. In the example inFIG. 1, annular frames indicate via-points, and numerical values insidethe annular frames indicate the sequence of passing through thevia-points.

A “stop-by spot”, or a spot to stop by, refers to a place set on thecourse as a place to stop by before arrival at the destination point.Non-limiting examples of the “stop-by spot” may include facilities,scenic spots, restaurants, and rest houses.

A “nice-moment place”, or a place for a nice moment, refers to alocation or a road passing through which is expected to give a usergreat experience. In a case where the user travels along the course by avehicle, the “nice-moment place” may include a location or a road whereperformance and appealingness of the vehicle the user is aboard areeasily appreciated. Such a location or a road may be selected on thebasis of characteristics of a vehicle model of the relevant vehicle.Non-limiting examples of the characteristics of the vehicle model of thevehicle may include specifications and the performance of the vehicle. A“location” as used here may include a point, an area, a section, aregion, and a range, as a certain place. A “road” as used here mayinclude all sections of a road, e.g., a range that is given a road name,or alternatively, the “road” as used here may include some of thesections of the road.

A “route” refers to a path between any two nearest neighbors of asequence from the starting point to the destination point through thevia-points. For example, a path from the starting point to the firstvia-point is called a “route”. A path from the first via-point to thenext via-point is called a “route”. A path from the last via-point tothe destination point is called a “route”.

1. First Embodiment

(1-1. Configuration Example of Information Processor)

With reference to FIG. 2, described is a configuration example of aninformation processor 1 according to an example embodiment of thetechnology.

The information processor 1 may be a mobile terminal device such as asmartphone and a tablet information processor. However, this isnon-limiting. Specific but non-limiting examples of the informationprocessor 1 may cover a wide range of devices such as personalcomputers, mobile phones, game machines, audio devices, and videodevices. The information processor 1 is implementable by a device thatis able to perform operations as information processing, e.g., a devicethat incorporates a microcomputer.

In this example embodiment, the information processor 1 is assumed to beused in the route guidance, inside a vehicle where the route guidance isprovided.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the information processor 1 may include acentral processing unit (CPU) 2, a read only memory (ROM) 3, a randomaccess memory (RAM) 4, a non-volatile memory unit 5, an input unit 6, adisplay unit 7, an audio output unit 8, a positional informationdetector 9, a short-distance communication unit 10, and a networkcommunication unit 11. These units may be coupled to one another by abus 20, allowing for exchanges of, for example, control signals, data,and detection signals between them as necessary.

The CPU 2 may execute various processing in accordance with a programheld by the ROM 3 or a program loaded in the RAM 4 from the non-volatilememory unit 5. The RAM 4 may also hold, as appropriate, data involved inthe execution of the various processing by the CPU 2.

The non-volatile memory unit 5 may include, without limitation, a harddisk drive (HDD) and a flash memory. The non-volatile memory unit 5 mayhold an application program that carries out processing of this exampleembodiment and carries out navigation as the route guidance. Moreover,the non-volatile memory unit 5 may also hold map information, routeinformation calculated for the navigation, and various kinds of sounddata and image data for use in the navigation.

Furthermore, the non-volatile memory unit 5 may also hold informationinvolved in the processing of this example embodiment. Non-limitingexamples of such information may include a stop-by spot database, anice-moment place database, an evaluation information database, and arequisite spot database. The stop-by spot database is provided formanagement of the stop-by spot as mentioned above. The nice-moment placedatabase is provided for management of the nice-moment place asmentioned above. The evaluation information database is provided formanagement of evaluation information used in route evaluation. The routeevaluation may be carried out in creating a proposed course for theroute guidance. The requisite spot database is provided for managementof information regarding various spots selected as a requisite to beincluded in a created course. In the following description, the databaseis abbreviated to “DB”.

The stop-by spot DB is a database of information regarding places thatmake proposed stop-by spots.

The nice-moment place DB is a database of information regardinglocations and roads that make proposed nice-moment places.

In other words, the stop-by spot DB and the nice-moment place DB aredatabases that hold information regarding places that make proposedvia-points.

It is to be noted that the evaluation information DB and the requisitespot DB are described later.

The input unit 6 may comprehensively denote various operators andoperation devices such as a keyboard, a mouse, a key, a dial, atouchscreen, a touchpad, and a remote controller. An operation made bythe user may be detected by the input unit 6, causing generation of asignal corresponding to the operation thus inputted. The signal may beinterpreted by the CPU 2.

The display unit 7 may include a display device such as a liquid crystaldisplay (LCD) and an organic electro-luminescence (EL) panel. Thedisplay unit 7 may provide the user with display of various kinds ofinformation. The display device included in the display unit 7 may beprovided in a housing of the information processor 1, but this isnon-limiting. The display device included in the display unit 7 may be aseparate display device coupled to the information processor 1.

The display unit 7 may display various images on a display screen, onthe basis of instructions from the CPU 2. Moreover, the display unit 7may provide graphical use interface (GUI) display such as, but notlimited to, various operation menus, icons, and messages, on the basisof the instructions from the CPU 2.

The audio output unit 8 may include, for example, a speaker and anamplifier. The audio output unit 8 may output various sounds based onthe instructions from the CPU 2. For example, the audio output unit 8may output audio guidance, on the occasion of the route guidance.

The positional information detector 9 may include a global navigationsatellite system (GNSS) sensor. The positional information detector 9may detect a current position of the information processor 1.Information representing the current position of the informationprocessor 1 detected by the positional information detector 9 may besupplied to the CPU 2 as current positional information. The currentpositional information inputted to the CPU 2 may be used in processingfor the route guidance.

The short-distance communication unit 10 may communicate with variousdevices, by short-distance wireless communication such as, but notlimited to, Bluetooth (registered trademark), Wi-Fi (registeredtrademark) communication, and near field communication (NFC), and/or bywired communication through, for example, a universal serial bus (USB).

The CPU 2 is able to carry out various data communication with, forexample, an information processor provided on vehicle side, through theshort-distance communication unit 10.

The network communication unit 11 may perform communication processingthrough a network 41.

The network 41 may be, for example, the Internet, a local area network(LAN), a satellite communication network, or any other network.

The CPU 2 is able to carry out various data communication with anexternal device coupled to the network 41, through the networkcommunication unit 11. In particular, in this example embodiment, theCPU 2 is able to carry out various data communication with an externalserver 42, through the network communication unit 11.

(1-2. CPU in First Embodiment)

FIG. 3 is a diagram provided for description of a detailed configurationof the CPU 2 of the information processor 1. In FIG. 3, subunits in theCPU 2 are illustrated, together with some related units illustrated inFIG. 1.

As illustrated in the figure, the CPU 2 may include an acquisition unit21, a setting unit 22, a route evaluation unit 23, a route selectionunit 24, a course creation unit 25, a course evaluation unit 26, adetermination unit 27, a course setting unit 28, and a navigator 29.

The acquisition unit 21 may acquire proposed via-points. In other words,the acquisition unit 21 may acquire information regarding the stop-byspot and the nice-moment place that make the proposed via-points. Suchinformation may be held by the stop-by spot DB and the nice-moment placeDB as described above, in the non-volatile memory unit 5.

In one alternative, regarding the acquisition of the proposedvia-points, the stop-by spot DB and the nice-moment place DB may beprovided in the external server 42. In this case, the acquisition unit21 may acquire the proposed via-points from the server 42 through thenetwork communication unit 11.

The setting unit 22 may set the starting point, one or more via-points,and the destination point. That is, the setting unit 22 may set thestarting point, the via-points, and the destination point, to create acourse to be traveled under the route guidance.

In this example, the setting unit 22 may set the starting point and thedestination point on the basis of an input of the operation by the userthrough the input unit 6. The input of the starting point and thedestination point may be accepted by, for example, a designation inputon a map displayed on the display unit 7, and/or a character input,without limitation.

Moreover, in this example, the setting unit 22 may serve as a via-pointsetting unit 22 a with respect to setting of the via-points. Thevia-point setting unit 22 a may set one or more via-points, out of theproposed via-points acquired by the acquisition unit 21, as via-pointsto be used in course creation. In this example, the via-point settingunit 22 a may set a plurality of via-points in creating a single course.

The route evaluation unit 23 calculates route evaluation points Vr foreach of proposed routes in each of segments S, on the basis of acondition of a road in the relevant one of the proposed routes. Thesegments S are coupled between respective two nearest neighbors of asequence from the starting point to the destination point through theone or more via-points. The segments S are also referred to as parts ofthe whole path from the starting point to the destination point,separated by the via-points. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1mentioned above, assume that the three via-points are set between thestarting point and the destination point. In this case, the foursegments S are formed: the segment S from the starting point to thefirst via-point; the segment S from the first via-point to the secondvia-point; the segment S from the second via-point to the thirdvia-point; and the segment S from the third via-point to the destinationpoint.

Each of the segments S has one end, i.e., a beginning end, and anotherend, i.e., a termination end. The route evaluation unit 23 may searchfor a plurality of routes between the beginning end and the terminationend, for each of the segments S. The plurality of the routes is referredto as the proposed routes. The route evaluation unit 23 may search forthe proposed routes for each of the segments S, and calculate the routeevaluation points Vr for each of the proposed routes thus searched for,on the basis of the condition of the road in the relevant one of theproposed routes.

In this example, the condition of the road may include a position of theroad, a feature of the road, weather on the road, or public reputationof the road, or any combination thereof. In one specific butnon-limiting example, the position of the road and the feature of theroad may be a position and a feature of a road that are selected fromviewpoint of capability of giving the user great travel experience, suchas fully appreciation of joy and pleasure of travel, fully appreciationof kinematic performance of the vehicle, e.g., power performance andsuspension performance, and evocation of the sense of adventure.Specific but non-limiting examples of the position and the feature ofsuch a road may include a mountain path, a winding road, and theseaside. The position and the feature of the road as exemplified abovehave good scenery, contributing to the pleasure of travel.

The weather on the road is the condition of the road related, mainly, tothe pleasure of travel. For example, the fine weather enhances thepleasure of travel.

The public reputation of the road is the condition of the road such asstrong popularity among, for example, remarks on the Internet.

Calculating the route evaluation points Vr under an evaluation criterionbased on the condition of the road as described above makes it possibleto evaluate the proposed routes under a criterion as to whether or notthe proposed route is able to give great travel experience to the user.

The route evaluation unit 23 may use storage information in theevaluation information DB held by the non-volatile memory unit 5, toevaluate the proposed routes under the evaluation criterion based on thecondition of the road. Although details are described later, theevaluation information DB may be a database that holds informationindicating corresponding relation of the condition of the road to thenumber of points to be reflected in the route evaluation points Vr in acase where the condition is met.

It is to be noted that, as with the stop-by spot DB and the nice-momentplace DB as mentioned above, the evaluation information DB may also beprovided in the external server 42. In this case, the route evaluationunit 23 may acquire the storage information in the evaluationinformation DB from the server 42 side through the network communicationunit 11.

In this example, in searching for the proposed routes for each of thesegments S, the route evaluation unit 23 may search for a route thatsatisfies a condition that necessary time is shorter than predeterminedtime. This prevents necessary time for the entire course from becomingunduly long.

The route selection unit 24 selects, on the basis of the routeevaluation points Vr, one proposed route from the proposed routes foreach of the segments S. For example, the route selection unit 24 mayselect one proposed route from the proposed routes, on the basis of thenumber of the route evaluation points Vr. In one specific butnon-limiting example, the route selection unit 24 of this example mayselect whichever proposed route has the greatest number of the routeevaluation points Vr, for each of the segments S.

In a case with presence of a plurality of the proposed routes having thegreatest number of the route evaluation points Vr, the route selectionunit 24 may select one proposed route in accordance with a predeterminedcondition. For example, the route selection unit 24 may make selectionbased on the necessary time or a distance. That is, the route selectionunit 24 may select whichever proposed route has the shortest necessarytime or the shortest distance. Alternatively, the route selection unit24 may make selection in consideration of connection with the precedingproposed route and the subsequent proposed route selected for theneighboring segments S. For example, assume a case where the pluralityof the proposed routes having the greatest number of the routeevaluation points Vr include the proposed route including a seaside roadand the other proposed routes. In this case, when the preceding proposedroute includes a seaside road, the route selection unit 24 may makeselection from the other proposed routes than the proposed routeincluding the seaside road. This prevents only the seaside roads frombeing selected along the course.

The course creation unit 25 connects the proposed routes selected by theroute selection unit 24, to create a course from the starting point tothe destination point. It is, therefore, unnecessary to evaluate allcombinations of the proposed routes assumed in the respective segments Sfrom the starting point to the destination point, in creating the courseunder the predetermined evaluation criterion based on the condition ofthe road. This leads to enhanced efficiency of the course creation.

In the course creation, the course creation unit 25 in this example isconfigured to create a different course from a distance-oriented ornecessary-time-oriented course. In one specific but non-limitingexample, the course creation unit 25 may perform route search from thestarting point to the destination point through the via-points, with theuse of a distance-oriented or necessary-time-oriented route searchalgorithm, to create a course for comparison. The course creation unit25 may determine whether or not the course for comparison matches thecourse created by connecting the proposed routes selected by the routeselection unit 24 as described above. In a case where the two coursesmatch, the course creation unit 25 may change a combination of thevia-points to be set and/or the sequence of passing through thevia-points, to create the course again. The course creation unit 25 maymake a similar determination as to the course thus created again.Performing such processing makes it possible to create the differentcourse from an efficiency-oriented course such as the distance-orientedor necessary-time-oriented course.

The course evaluation unit 26 may calculate course evaluation points Vcunder a predetermined evaluation criterion, with respect to the coursecreated by the course creation unit 25. In this example, the courseevaluation unit 26 may calculate, as the course evaluation points Vc, atotal value of the route evaluation points Vr calculated for theproposed routes selected for the respective segments S.

The determination unit 27 may make a determination as to whether or notthe course created by the course creation unit 25 satisfies apredetermined condition other than the condition based on the routeevaluation points Vr. In one specific but non-limiting example, thedetermination unit 27 in this example may determine whether or not thecourse includes a predetermined requisite place to be included in thecourse, as the determination as to whether or not the course created bythe course creation unit 25 satisfies the predetermined condition.

As described above, the non-volatile memory unit 5 may hold therequisite spot DB. The requisite spot DB is provided for the managementof the information regarding the various spots selected as the requisiteto be included in the course. The determination unit 27 may determinewhether or not the requisite spot is included in the created course, onthe basis of the information of the requisite spot DB.

It is to be noted that details of the determination are described lateragain. The requisite spot DB may be provided in the external server 42,rather than in the non-volatile memory unit 5. In this case, thedetermination unit 27 may acquire the storage information of therequisite spot DB from the server 42 side through the networkcommunication unit 11.

The course setting unit 28 may set the course created by the coursecreation unit 25 as a proposed course Cc for the route guidance, on thebasis of the course evaluation points Vc. In one specific butnon-limiting example, the course setting unit 28 may set the createdcourse as the proposed course Cc in a case with a determination that thenumber of the course evaluation points Vc is equal to or greater than apredetermined reference value. The predetermined reference value ishereinafter referred to as a “threshold TH”.

The course setting unit 28 may allow information representing theproposed course Cc to be displayed on the screen of the display unit 7.Refer to FIG. 9 described later. As the information representing theproposed course Cc, the course setting unit 28 may allow, for example, aline representing the course and marks representing the respectivevia-points to be displayed on a map.

Displaying the proposed course Cc as described above makes it possibleto allow the user to check whether or not to set the proposed course Ccas the course for the route guidance. In this example, in displaying theinformation representing the proposed course Cc, the course setting unit28 may provide, on the screen, GUI display of an operator that allowsthe user to input an instruction to set the proposed course Cc as thecourse for the route guidance. In response to an operation on theoperator, the course setting unit 28 may set the proposed course Cc asthe course for the route guidance. Details are described later.

It is to be noted that in the following, the course for the routeguidance is referred to as a “guidance course Cg”.

Here, the course setting unit 28 may revise the course in a case with adetermination that the number of the course evaluation points Vc issmaller than the threshold TH. Such revision of the course may be madeby changing the combination of the via-points to be set and/or thesequence of passing through the via-points to perform the coursecreation again.

Moreover, the course setting unit 28 is configured to set the coursecreated by the course creation unit 25 as the proposed course Cc, in acase where the determination unit 27 determines that the forgoingcondition, i.e., the condition regarding the requisite spot, issatisfied. That is, the course setting unit 28 in this example may setthe created course as the proposed course Cc, in a case where thefollowing conditions are both satisfied: the condition that the numberof the course evaluation points Vc is equal to or greater than thethreshold TH; and the condition that the requisite spot is included inthe created course.

The navigator 29 may perform processing for the route guidance to thedestination point, on the basis of the current positional informationinputted from the positional information detector 9 and the informationregarding the guidance course Cg. In one specific but non-limitingexample, the navigator 29 may perform processing of outputting the audioguidance through the audio output unit 8 and/or outputting an image forthe route guidance to be displayed by the display unit 7.

It is to be noted that here is given an example where the informationfor the route guidance, e.g., the audio guidance and the image for theroute guidance, is outputted by the output unit provided in theinformation processor 1 such as the audio output unit 8 and the displayunit 7. In one alternative, the information for the route guidance maybe outputted by an output unit provided in the vehicle such as a displayunit and a speaker, with the use of wired or wireless communication withthe vehicle side through the short-distance communication unit 10.

(1-3. Processing Procedure)

With reference to flowcharts in FIGS. 4 and 5, description is given of aspecific processing procedure to be executed by the CPU 2, or by thesubunits of the CPU 2 according to the first embodiment as described.

FIG. 4 illustrates a procedure corresponding to processing before thecourse creation.

First, in step S101, the CPU 2 may perform a process of accepting aninput of a scheduled date of a start of a drive and assumed time for thedrive. The assumed time for the drive means necessary time for the driveassumed by the user themselves.

By the process of step S101, the CPU 2 may accept the input of thescheduled date of the start of the drive and the assumed time for thedrive. In response thereto, in step S102, the CPU 2 may perform aprocess of accepting the starting point and the destination point. Asdescribed above, the input of the starting point and the destinationpoint may be accepted by, for example, the designation input on the mapdisplayed on the display unit 7, and/or the character input, withoutlimitation.

In step S102, the CPU 2 may accept the input of the starting point andthe destination point. In response thereto, in step S103, the CPU 2 mayset the predetermined number of the via-points available for settingbetween the starting point and the destination point, out of theproposed via-points. In one specific but non-limiting example, thespot-by spot DB and the nice-moment place DB as mentioned above maymanage the proposed via-spots such as the stop-by spot and thenice-moment place. Out of the proposed via-spots, the CPU 2 may set thepredetermined number, e.g., a plurality in this example, of the proposedvia-points available for the setting in terms of their positionalrelation to the starting point or the destination point.

In step S104 following step S103, the CPU 2 may set the sequence ofpassing through the via-points thus set.

In step S104, the CPU 2 may set the sequence of passing through thevia-points. In response thereto, in step S105, the CPU 2 may search forthe proposed routes for each of the segments S. The segments S arecoupled between the respective two nearest neighbors of the sequencefrom the starting point to the destination points through thevia-points. In other words, the CPU 2 may search for the plurality ofthe proposed routes, for each of the segments S. Each of the pluralityof the proposed routes are coupled between the beginning end and thetermination end of the relevant one of the segments S. As describedabove, in searching for the plurality of the proposed routes for each ofthe segments S, the CPU 2 may search for the route that satisfies thecondition that the necessary time is shorter than the predeterminedtime. This prevents the necessary time for the entire course frombecoming unduly long.

In step S105, the CPU 2 may search for the proposed routes. In responsethereto, the CPU 2 may cause the flow to proceed to step S106, tocalculate evaluation points for each of the proposed routes. That is,the CPU 2 may calculate, with the use of the evaluation information DBmentioned above, the route evaluation points Vr for each of the proposedroutes thus searched for.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are charts of contents of the information in theevaluation information DB.

FIG. 6A schematically summarizes contents of information related toincentive factors of the evaluation points. FIG. 6B schematicallysummarizes contents of information related to demerit factors of theevaluation points.

As illustrated in the figures, the incentive factors and the demeritfactors of the evaluation points may be determined for each category ofthe road to be evaluated. Categories of the incentive factors mayinclude, for example, “location”, “curve and straight line”, “change inelevation”, “road properties”, “weather”, and “user feedback (FB)”.Categories of the demerit factors may include, for example, “roadproperties” and “user feedback (FB)”.

As summarized in the figure, specific but non-limiting examples of “roadtype” belonging to the category “location” in the incentive factors mayinclude “tunnel”, “seaside”, “in a forest”, “long forest road”,“mountain path”, “cliff”, and “feeling the presence of the sea below”.

Specific but non-limiting examples of “road type” belonging to thecategory “curve and straight line” may include “winding”, “sharp curve”,and “loop bridge”.

Specific but non-limiting examples of “road type” belonging to thecategory “change in elevation” may include “steep downward slope” and“gentle downward slope”.

Specific but non-limiting examples of “road type” belonging to thecategory “road properties” may include “wide road”, “gravel road”, and“muddy road”. Specific but non-limiting examples of “road type”belonging to the category “weather” may include “sunny and fine” and“rainfall”.

Specific but non-limiting examples of “road type” belonging to thecategory “user feedback” may include “well-reputed road”.

Regarding the demerit factors, specific but non-limiting examples of“road type” belonging to the category “road properties” may include“road lacking a challenge”, “too short travel time”, “narrow road thatcauses difficulty in passing each other”, and “road with many trafficlights”.

In addition, as for the demerit factors, specific but non-limitingexamples of “road type” belonging to the category “user feedback” mayinclude “μl-reputed road”.

In each of the categories, definitions for each “road type” aresummarized in the figures.

Regarding “user feedback”, the definitions in the figure are given byterminology such as “the number of users' likes”, “the number ofpositive remarks”, and “the number of negative remarks”. Suchterminology assumes the presence of, for example, a website on theInternet that allows a plurality of users to write, i.e., post, or tobrowse drive-related information. In one specific but non-limitingexample, such a website may accumulate information regarding roads suchas a mountain pass and a winding road located in various places, andinformation regarding evaluation by users who have actually traveledalong the roads. Specifically, the information regarding the evaluationby the users may include evaluation information such as “likes” based onbinary evaluation values, i.e., whether to prize or not, and evaluationinformation written as text information. Among these pieces of theevaluation information, a sum of the binary evaluation values of theformer corresponds to “the number of users' likes” in the figures. Thenumber of parts including positive remarks extracted from the lattercorresponds to “the number of the positive remarks” in the figure. Thenumber of parts including negative remarks extracted from the lattercorresponds to “the number of the negative remarks” in the figure.

In the evaluation information DB, for each “road type” as describedabove, incentive points or demerit points may be determined incorresponding relation thereto. The incentive points take a positivevalue, while the demerit points take a negative value. The incentivepoints and the demerit points may determine the number of points to beadded to the route evaluation points Vr.

In this example, for some items in “road type”, the number of theincentive points may vary with a length of the relevant road. Forexample, for “tunnel” and “long forest road”, the number of theincentive points may be increased in accordance with the length of therelevant road.

In the calculation process of step S106, the CPU 2 may calculate theroute evaluation points Vr for each of the proposed routes, on the basisof the information in the evaluation information DB.

In the evaluation information DB in reality, as to the categories otherthan “weather”, for each “road type” in FIG. 6A or 6B, positionalinformation on the relevant road may be held, in association with theinformation on the incentive points or the demerit points. As to thecategory “weather”, information on points may be held, in respectiveassociation with “sunny and fine”, “rainfall”, and “snowfall”.

In the process of step S106, for “road type” of the categories otherthan “weather”, the CPU 2 may search for a road of the relevant “roadtype” from the route to be evaluated, on the basis of the positionalinformation held by the evaluation information DB as described above. Ina case with presence of any road of the relevant “road type”, the CPU 2may acquire a corresponding value of the incentive points or the demeritpoints. At this occasion, for “road type” in which the number of thepoints varies with the length of the road, e.g., “tunnel” and “longforest road”, the CPU 2 may detect the length of the relevant section ofthe road on the route to be evaluated. The CPU 2 may acquire the numberof the points in accordance with the length detected.

For “road type” belonging to the category “weather”, the CPU 2 mayacquire, on the basis of information regarding the scheduled date of thestart inputted in step S101 and on the basis of information regarding aposition or a region of the route to be evaluated, information onweather forecast in the region of the route to be evaluated, from anexternal weather forecast information source such as a predeterminedweather forecast website. In a case where the acquired information onthe weather forecast matches “sunny and fine”, “rainfall”, or“snowfall”, the CPU 2 may acquire the corresponding number of thepoints.

Thus, the CPU 2 may calculate the route evaluation points Vr by summingthe acquired points.

For the category “weather”, the CPU 2 may vary the number of the pointsfor each of “sunny and fine”, “rainfall”, and “snowfall” between apositive value and a negative value, in accordance with a type of thecourse. For example, in some cases, the contents of the user's inputsuch as the scheduled date of the start and the destination point maygive a clue to estimation of a weather-related type of the course, e.g.,a course that matches the sunny weather, and a course that matches therainy weather. In this case, the CPU 2 may vary the number of the pointsfor “sunny and fine” and “rainfall” in the corresponding relation tosuch a type of the course.

Furthermore, the CPU 2 may change the points for “well-reputed road” in“user feedback”, to a value corresponding to a value calculated by thefollowing calculation expression as given in the figure:(coefficient×the number of users' likes)+(coefficient×the number ofpositive remarks). Similarly, the CPU 2 may change the points for“μl-reputed road” in “user feedback”, to a value corresponding to avalue calculated by the following calculation expression as given in thefigure: (coefficient×the number of users' likes)+(coefficient×the numberof negative remarks).

It is to be noted that examples of numerical values of the incentivepoints and the demerit points for each “road type” summarized in FIGS.6A and 6B are merely examples for purposes of explanation. The incentivepoints and the demerit points are not limited to these numerical values.

In response to the execution of the calculation process of step S106,the CPU 2 may cause the flow to proceed to step S107.

In step S107, the CPU 2 may rearrange the proposed routes for each ofthe segments S, in a decreasing order of the evaluation points. That is,the CPU 2 may sort the proposed routes for each of the segments S, in adecreasing order of the number of the route evaluation points Vr.

It is to be noted that such a sorting process may be omitted.

In step S108 following step S107, the CPU 2 may connect the proposedroutes having the greatest number of the route evaluation points Vr forthe respective segments S, to create the course. Hereinbelow, the coursecreated in step S108 is referred to as a “trial course”.

In step S109 following step S108, the CPU 2 may determine whether or notthe trial course is different from the efficiency-oriented course. Thatis, the CPU 2 may determine whether or not the trial course created instep S108 matches the course searched for with the use of anefficiency-oriented algorithm as the distance-oriented ornecessary-time-oriented route search algorithm.

In a case with a determination that the trial course matches theefficiency-oriented course (No in step S109), the CPU 2 may cause theflow to return to step S103, to create the course again. At thisoccasion, in the processes of steps S103 and S104 to be executed again,the CPU 2 may allow the combination of the via-points or the sequence ofpassing through the via-points, or both, to be changed from the settingfor the preceding course creation. This leads to creation of a differentcourse from the efficiency-oriented course.

Meanwhile, in step S109, in a case with a determination that the trialcourse does not match the efficiency-oriented course (Yes in step S109),the CPU 2 may cause the flow to proceed to step S110 illustrated in FIG.5.

FIG. 5 illustrates a processing procedure corresponding to revision ofthe course and setting of the proposed course.

In step S110, the CPU 2 may extract spots on the trial course. The spotas used here means a spot managed by the requisite spot DB as describedabove. That is, the spot as used here means the predetermined requisitespot, e.g., a point or facilities, to be included in the course.

FIG. 7 is a chart of contents of the information in the requisite spotDB.

The requisite spots may be classified into levels according to a degreeof importance, or a degree of necessity. In this example, three levelsfrom level-1 to level-3 are defined. The higher the order of the level,the higher the degree of importance.

Level-3 requisite spots may include “facilities with a parking lotnearby”, “facilities having a rest room”, and “a rest stop”. As usedhere, “a rest stop” means a spot that has at least a space available forparking vehicles.

It is to be noted that the level-3 requisite spots are not limited to“facilities with a parking lot nearby”, “facilities having a rest room”,and “a rest stop” as exemplified above. The level-3 requisite spots mayinclude, for example, “meal facilities” such as restaurants, and“facilities available for souvenir shopping”.

Level-2 requisite spots may include, for example, “a locally well-knownshop”, “a shop that sells extraordinary items”, “a privately managedshop”, and “a shop recommended by a TV star”.

Level-1 requisite spots may include, for example, “a spot with a superbview”, “a theme park for, without limitation, animals, alligators,plants, or flowers”, “fruit picking for, without limitation,strawberries or kiwi fruits”, “a cafe”, “an art gallery”, “virtualexperience facilities”, “a footbath”, “a cave”, and “a cape”.

It will be understood that the tendency is that the level-2 requisitespots are tourist spots known only to few, while the level-1 requisitespots are well-known tourist spots, or famous spots.

In this example, conditions of the requisite spot may be provided foreach level. In one specific but non-limiting example, as to the level-1requisite spots, the condition is that one or more is to be included inthe course. As to the level-2 requisite spots, the condition is thatthree or more are to be included in the course.

As to level-3 requisite spots, different conditions may be provided foreach spot. For example, as to “facilities with a parking lot nearby”,the condition is that one or more are to be included during 2-hourtravel. As to “facilities with a rest room”, the condition is that oneor more are to be included during 1.5-hour travel. As to “a rest spot”,the condition is that one or more are to be included in each of theroutes on the course.

In step S110, the CPU 2 may extract, from the trial course, the spotsthat correspond to the requisite spot managed by the requisite spot DBas mentioned above. In one specific but non-limiting example, therequisite spot DB in reality may hold the positional information of thespots that correspond to the requisite spot, for each of the levels fromlevel-1 to level-3. On the basis of the positional information, the CPU2 may extract all the requisite spots present on the trial course.

FIG. 8 is a diagram of a visualized example of extraction of therequisite spot from the course. In the figure, a black bold linerepresents a path of the course. Serially numbered white circlesrepresent the via-points and the sequence of passing through thevia-points. Color-coded circles in white, gray, and black respectivelyrepresent the level-3 requisite spots (white), the level-2 requisitespots (gray), and the level-1 requisite spots (black).

As used here, the spot present on the course does not mean strictly onlythe spot present on the road as the course, but may include a spot thatmay be regarded as present on the course. For example, the spot presenton the course may include a spot located at a distance from the coursewithin a predetermined range.

In FIG. 5, in step S110, the CPU 2 may execute the process of theextraction. In response thereto, in steps S111, S112, and S113, the CPU2 may make determination as to the condition of each of the level-3requisite spots. In one specific but non-limiting example, in step S111,the CPU 2 may determine whether or not one or more “facilities with aparking lot nearby” are included during 2-hour travel. In step S112, theCPU 2 may determine whether or not one or more “facilities with a restroom” are included during 1.5-hour travel. In step S113, the CPU 2 maydetermine whether or not one or more “rest stops” are included in eachof the routes on the course.

After executing the processes of steps S111 to S113, the CPU 2 maydetermine, in step S114, whether or not the conditions of the level-3requisite spots are all satisfied. That is, the CPU 2 may determinewhether or not positive results have been obtained in the determinationprocesses of steps S111 to S113.

As described above, in step S111, the CPU 2 may determine whether or notone or more “facilities with a parking lot nearby” are included during2-hour travel. In step S112, the CPU 2 may determine whether or not oneor more “facilities having a rest room” are included during 1.5-hourtravel. Moreover, in the process of step S111, the CPU 2 may determinewhether or not the condition as described above is satisfied, in a casewhere the necessary time for the trial course is equal to or longer than2 hours. In the process of step S112, the CPU 2 may determine whether ornot the condition as described above is satisfied, in a case where thenecessary time for the trial course is equal to or longer than 1.5hours. The necessary time for the trial course may be necessary time fortravel from the starting point to the destination point. Specifically,in this example, in step S111, in a case where the necessary time isshorter than 2 hours, the CPU 2 may compulsively obtain a determinationresult that one or more “facilities with a parking lot nearby” areincluded during 2-hour travel. In step S112, in a case where thenecessary time is shorter than 1.5 hours, the CPU 2 may compulsivelyobtain a determination result that one or more “facilities with a restroom” are included during 1.5-hour travel. In step S111, the CPU 2 maydetermine whether or not one or more “facilities with a parking lotnearby” are included during 2-hour travel, solely in a case where thenecessary time is equal to or longer than 2 hours. In step S112, the CPU2 may determine whether or not one or more “facilities having a restroom” are included during 1.5-hour travel, solely in a case where thenecessary time is equal to or longer than 1.5 hours.

As described, in this example, with regard to “facilities with a parkinglot nearby” and “facilities having a rest room” out of the level-3requisite spots, the CPU 2 may be allowed to determine whether or notthe requisite spots are included in the course, on the condition thatthe necessary time for the course is equal to or longer thanpredetermined time.

In particular, with respect to facilities such as a rest room, settingof such facilities may be considered to be unnecessary, if the necessarytime ranges within a certain period of time. Accordingly, with respectto such spots, the CPU 2 may refrain from determining whether or notsuch spots are included in the course, in the case where the necessarytime for the course is short. Hence, it is possible to prevent theconditions imposed on the course from becoming excessive, leading toappropriate course setting.

In step S114, in a case with a negative result that the conditions ofthe level-3 requisite spots are not all satisfied (No in step S114), theCPU 2 may cause the flow to proceed to step S115, to revise the courseto satisfy the conditions. In other words, the CPU 2 may revise thecourse, for whichever requisite spot does not satisfy the condition, outof “facilities with a parking lot nearby”, “facilities having a restroom”, and “rest spot”, to satisfy the condition. At this occasion,there may be cases with presence of a plurality of proposed requisitespots to satisfy the condition. In such cases, for example, the CPU 2may select, from among the proposed requisite spots, whichever has aminimum spacing distance from the course before revision. This makes itpossible to suppress deformation of the course caused by the revision.

Thus, in step S115, the CPU 2 may revise the course. In responsethereto, in step S116, the CPU 2 may extract spots on the revisedcourse. That is, for the revised course, the CPU 2 may perform a similarprocess to that of previous step S110, to extract the spots on thecourse. This process is a process in consideration of possibility thatnew requisite spots of level-2 or lower are included in the revisedcourse. Refer to processes of steps S117 and S120 described later.

In response to the execution of the process of step S116, the CPU 2 maycause the flow to proceed to step S117.

In previous step S114, in a case with a positive result that theconditions of the level-3 requisite spots are all satisfied (Yes in stepS114), the CPU 2 may omit the processes of steps S115 and S116, andcause the flow to proceed to step S117.

In step S117, the CPU 2 may determine whether or not three or morelevel-2 requisite spots are included. In other words, the CPU 2 maydetermine whether or not three or more level-2 requisite spots areincluded in the course as a target of the determination regarding theconditions, e.g., the trial course created in step S108 or the revisedcourse in step S115.

In step S117, in a case with a negative result that the course fails tocontain more than three level-2 requisite spots (No in step S117), theCPU 2 may cause the flow to proceed to step S118, to revise the courseto satisfy the conditions. It is to be noted that the revision processof step S118 may be also carried out to suppress the deformation of thecourse caused by the revision, as with the case of previous step S115.Thus, in step S118, the CPU 2 may revise the course. In responsethereto, in step S119, the CPU 2 may extract spots on the revised courseand cause the flow to proceed to step S120.

Meanwhile, in step S117, in a case with a positive result that three ormore level-2 requisite spots are included (Yes in step S117), the CPU 2may omit the processes of steps S118 and S119, and cause the flow toproceed to step S120.

In step S120, the CPU 2 may determine whether or not one or more level-1requisite spots are included. In a case with a negative result (No instep S120), the CPU 2 may revise the course, in step S121, to satisfythe condition. Thereafter, the CPU 2 may cause the flow to proceed tostep S122. Meanwhile, in step S120, in a case with a positive result(Yes in step S120), the CPU 2 may omit the process of step S121 andcause the flow to proceed to step S122.

In step S122, the CPU 2 may calculate the course evaluation points Vc.In this example, the CPU 2 may calculate, as the course evaluationpoints Vc, the total value of the route evaluation points Vr of theproposed routes that constitute the course. Accordingly, in step S122,the CPU 2 may calculate the route evaluation points Vr for each of theproposed routes that constitute the course, on the basis of theinformation in the evaluation information DB as mentioned above, andthereafter, calculate the total value of the route evaluation points Vras the course evaluation points Vc.

Calculating the course evaluation points Vc at this timing of step S122makes it possible to calculate the course evaluation points Vc for therevised course in the case where the course revision process isperformed in step S115, S118, or S121.

In step S123 following step S122, the CPU 2 may determine whether or notthe number of the course evaluation points Vc is equal to or greaterthan the threshold TH. In a case where the number of the courseevaluation points Vc is smaller than the threshold TH (No in step S123),the CPU 2 may cause the flow to return to step S103 illustrated in FIG.4, to create the course again. This may be also referred to as therevision of the trial course.

Providing the process of step S123 makes it possible to revise thecourse in the case where the number of the course evaluation points Vcis smaller than a predetermined reference value. The course evaluationpoints Vc may serve as evaluation points in terms of the capability togive great travel experience such as the joy of travel and fine scenery.

Meanwhile, in step S123, in a case with a determination that the numberof the course evaluation points Vc is equal to or greater than thethreshold TH (Yes in step S123), the CPU 2 may cause the flow to proceedto step S124, to set the trial course as the proposed course Cc for theroute guidance. Thus, the CPU 2 may terminate the series of processesillustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5.

The CPU 2 may provide display of information representing the proposedcourse Cc thus set, on the screen of the display unit 7, as processingto be executed by the course setting unit 28 as described above. In thisway, the CPU 2 may allow the user to confirm the contents of the course.

FIG. 9 is a diagram of an example of a confirmation display screen G1.The confirmation display screen G1 is provided for the user'sconfirmation of the contents of the proposed course Cc.

As illustrated in the figure, the confirmation display screen G1 mayinclude a map display region Am. The map display region Am is providedfor display of the map information. The information representing theproposed course Cc may be displayed on a map in the map display regionAm. In one specific but non-limiting example, in the map display regionAm, information regarding a path of the proposed course Cc, the startingpoint, the destination point, and serially numbered pin marks may bedisplayed. The information regarding the path of the proposed course Ccmay be represented by a black bold line in the figure. The startingpoint may be denoted by a character of “S”. The destination point may bedenoted by a character of “G”. The serially numbered pin marks mayrepresent the via-points and the sequence of passing through thevia-points. In the example illustrated in the figure, out of thevia-points, the via-points as the nice-moment places are represented byshaded pin marks.

In the confirmation display screen G1, distance information I1 andnecessary time information 12 may be displayed. The distance informationI1 may indicate a distance of the proposed course Cc, i.e., a distanceof the path from the starting point to the destination point through thevia-points. The necessary time information 12 may indicate the necessarytime for the proposed course Cc, i.e., necessary time for travel fromthe starting point to the destination point through the via-points. Inthis example, as the distance information I1, a difference value betweenthe distance of the proposed course Cc and a distance of theefficiency-oriented course may be displayed in parentheses. Similarly,as the necessary time information 12, a difference value between thenecessary time for the proposed course Cc and necessary time for theefficiency-oriented course may be displayed in parentheses.

Furthermore, in the confirmation display screen G1, a decide button B1may be displayed as a GUI that allows for an input of an instruction toset the proposed course Cc as the course for the route guidance. Inresponse to detection of an operation on the decide button B1, the CPU 2may set the proposed course Cc as the course for the route guidance,i.e., the guidance course Cg.

2. Second Embodiment

(2-1. CPU in Second Embodiment)

In the first embodiment, given is an example where the course is createdto allow the number of the course evaluation points Vc to become asgreat as possible. In one specific but non-limiting example, in thefirst embodiment, the proposed routes having the greatest number of theroute evaluation points Vr for each of the segments S may be connectedto create the trial course. This makes it possible to create the courseto allow the number of the course evaluation points Vc to become asgreat as possible.

A second embodiment of the technology may include allowing the user tomake selection as to how many evaluation points the course to be createdhas.

As described above, the route evaluation points Vr and the courseevaluation points Vc in this example are the evaluation points from theviewpoint of the capability to give the user the great travel experiencesuch as the fully appreciation of the joy and the pleasure of travel,the fully appreciation of the kinematic performance of the vehicle, andthe evocation of the sense of adventure. Hereinafter, an evaluationindex from such a viewpoint is referred to as a “discovery gain”. Thegreater value the discovery gain takes, the greater the capability togive the user, for example, the joy and the pleasure of travel and thesense of adventure.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of the CPU 2 of the information processor 1.

It is to be noted that in the second embodiment, a hardwareconfiguration of the information processor 1 is similar to thatillustrated in FIG. 2, and therefore, redundant description is avoided.In the following description, similar parts to those already describedare denoted by the same reference characters or the same step numerals,and description thereof is omitted.

In this case, the CPU 2 may further include a display controller 30 anda guidance course setting unit 31, in addition to the subunits such asthe acquisition unit 21 to the navigator 29 illustrated in FIG. 3.

The display controller 30 may cause the course and an indicator of thecourse evaluation points Vc to be displayed on the same screen. In onespecific but non-limiting example, the display controller 30 accordingto this example may provide display of a confirmation display screen G1′as illustrated in FIG. 11 on the display unit 7, in response to thesetting of the proposed course Cc. The proposed course Cc may be createdto allow the number of the course evaluation points Vc to become asgreat as possible by the processing illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5.

The confirmation display screen G1′ illustrated in FIG. 11 is differentfrom the confirmation display screen G1 illustrated in FIG. 9 in thatthe confirmation display screen G1′ may include a gain display regionA1. In the gain display region A1, an indicator of the discovery gainmay be displayed. The indicator of the discovery gain may be alsoreferred to as an indicator of the course evaluation points Vc.

In this example, in the gain display region A1, a GUI that allows theuser to designate the discovery gain may be displayed as the indicatorof the discovery gain. In one specific but non-limiting example, a GUIin a form of, for example, a slide bar may be displayed as the GUI inthis example. The GUI in the form of the slide bar may make it possibleto designate magnitude of the discovery gain by a position of a slidebar B2.

In this case, the discovery gain may be indicated by the slide bar B2 onthe confirmation display screen G1′. In response to an operation tochange the discovery gain with the use of the slide bar B2, the coursecreation unit 25 may generate a course corresponding to a post-changevalue of the discovery gain. In the case with the operation to changethe discovery gain, the display controller 30 may perform a displaycontrol of switching a course to be displayed on the confirmationdisplay screen G1′ from the course corresponding to a pre-change valueof the discovery gain to the course corresponding to the post-changevalue of the discovery gain.

FIGS. 12A to 12C are diagrams of examples of screen transitions of theconfirmation display screen G1′, with the discovery gain changed.

In this example, the value of the discovery gain may be variable in fourlevels from zero (0) to 3. In the case where the course creation isperformed to allow the number of the course evaluation points Vc tobecome as great as possible by the processing illustrated in FIGS. 4 and5, the value of the discovery gain may take the greatest value “3”.Refer to FIG. 11. FIG. 12A illustrates an example of the screentransition from a state of FIG. 11 to a state with the value of thediscovery gain changed to “2”. FIG. 12B illustrates an example of thescreen transition in response to the change in the value of thediscovery gain from “2” to “1”. FIG. 12C illustrates an example of thescreen transition in response to the change in the value of thediscovery gain from “1” to “0”.

In the case where the discovery gain equals to 0 (=0), theefficiency-oriented course as described above may be created.Accordingly, on the confirmation display screen G1′ in FIG. 12C, thevalue in the parentheses with respect to the distance information I1 is“+0.0 km”, and the value in the parentheses with respect to thenecessary time information 12 is “+0 m”.

Referring to FIG. 10 again, the guidance course setting unit 31 may setthe course displayed on the confirmation display screen G1′ as thecourse for the route guidance, on the basis of the user's operation. Inone specific but non-limiting example, the guidance course setting unit31 may set the course displayed in the map display region Am as theguidance course Cg, in accordance with the operation on the decidebutton B1 provided on the confirmation display screen G1′.

The confirmation display screen G1′ in this example may further includea customize button B3. The customize button B3 may allow the user tomake an operation to perform course customization such as a change inthe via-point on the course, which is described later.

In the forgoing description, the GUI in the form of the slide bar isgiven as an example of the GUI to be displayed as the indicator of thediscovery gain. In one alternative, a GUI in another form such as a dialform and a meter form may be adopted as the GUI to be displayed as theindicator of the discovery gain.

(2-2. Processing Procedure)

With reference to flowcharts in FIGS. 13 and 14, description is given ofa specific processing procedure to be executed by the CPU 2, or by thesubunits of the CPU 2 according to the second embodiment as described.

FIG. 13 illustrates a procedure corresponding to processing before thecreation of the course corresponding to the value of the discovery gain.FIG. 14 illustrates a processing procedure corresponding to the revisionof the course, the setting of the proposed course Cc, and the setting ofthe guidance course Cg. The series of the processing illustrated inFIGS. 13 and 14 may be started in response to the processing illustratedin FIGS. 4 and 5 being executed and the confirmation display screen G1′being displayed on the display unit 7. The confirmation display screenG1′ may provide the display of the proposed course Cc, with thediscovery gain being equal to 3 (=3).

First, in steps S130 and S131, the CPU 2 may be on standby for either anoperation of changing the discovery gain or an operation on the decidebutton B1. In step S131, in a case with a determination of presence ofthe operation on the decide button B1 (Yes in step S131), the CPU 2 maycause the flow to proceed to step S139, to perform the process ofsetting the proposed course Cc as the guidance course Cg. That is, theCPU 2 may set the proposed course Cc on display on the confirmationdisplay screen G1′ as the guidance course Cg.

Meanwhile, in step S130, in a case with a determination of presence ofthe operation of changing the discovery gain (Yes in step S130), the CPU2 may cause the flow to proceed to step S132, to determine whether ornot the discovery gain is equal to zero (=0). That is, the CPU 2 maydetermine whether or not the discovery gain designated by the operationof changing the discovery gain is equal to zero (0). In a case with thediscovery gain being zero (=0) (Yes in step S132), the CPU 2 may causethe flow to proceed to step S137, to create the efficiency-orientedcourse as the trial course. Thereafter, the CPU 2 may cause the flow toproceed to step S138 illustrated in FIG. 14, to perform processing toprovide display of the trial course as the proposed course Cc for theroute guidance. In other words, the CPU 2 may perform the processing toprovide, on the display unit 7, the display of the confirmation displayscreen G1′ in which the trial course is displayed as the proposed courseCc in the map display region Am.

In this way, in the case with the discovery gain changed to zero (=0),the proposed course Cc to be displayed on the confirmation displayscreen G1′ is switched to the efficiency-oriented course. Refer to FIG.12C.

Meanwhile, in step S132, in a case where the discovery gain is not equalto zero (0) (No in step S132), the CPU 2 may cause the flow to proceedto step S133, to set an evaluation reference value X. The evaluationreference value X may correspond to the post-change value of thediscovery gain. This corresponds to processing of converting the valueof the discovery gain into the number of the course evaluation pointsVc. In this example, the evaluation reference values X corresponding tothe respective values “3”, “2”, and “1” of the discovery gain may bepredetermined. In step S133, the CPU 2 may set whichever value of thepredetermined evaluation reference values X corresponds to thepost-change value of the discovery gain.

In response to the execution of the process of step S133, the CPU 2 mayexecute the processes of steps S103 to S106 described in the firstembodiment, to calculate the evaluation points for each of the proposedroutes in each of the segments S, i.e., the route evaluation points Vr.

Thereafter, in response to the execution of the calculation process ofstep S106, the CPU 2 may execute, in step S134, a process of obtaining acombination of the proposed routes having the nearest number of thecourse evaluation points Vc, or a total value of the evaluation points,to the evaluation reference value X. In other words, the CPU 2 mayobtain, as the combination of the proposed routes for the respectivesegments S from the starting point to the destination point, acombination having the nearest total value of the route evaluationpoints Vr to the evaluation reference value X.

In step S135 following step S134, the CPU 2 may serially connect theproposed routes in the obtained combination, to create the trial course.Thereafter, in subsequent step S109, the CPU 2 may determine whether ornot the trial course is different from the efficiency-oriented course.In a case where the trial course matches the efficiency-oriented course(No in step S109), the CPU 2 may cause the flow to return to step S103.This leads to the creation of the course different from theefficiency-oriented course.

Meanwhile, in the case where the trial course is different from theefficiency-oriented course (Yes in step S109), the CPU 2 may execute theprocesses of steps S110 to S122 illustrated in FIG. 14, to determinewhether or not the conditions of the requisite spots are satisfied, torevise the course in the case where the conditions are not satisfied,and to calculate the course evaluation points Vc with respect to thecourse that satisfies the conditions. It is to be noted that thecontents of the processes from step S110 to step S122 are described inthe forgoing, and redundant description is avoided.

In step S136 following step S122, the CPU 2 may determine whether or notthe number of the course evaluation points Vc takes a valuecorresponding to the post-change discovery gain. That is, the CPU 2 maydetermine whether or not the number of the course evaluation points Vctakes a value corresponding to the evaluation reference value X set instep S133. In one specific but non-limiting example, the CPU 2 maydetermine whether or not a difference value, or an absolute value of thedifference value, between the number of the course evaluation points Vcand the evaluation reference value X is equal to or smaller than apredetermined value.

In a case where the number of the course evaluation points Vc fails totake the value corresponding to the post-change discovery gain (No instep S136), the CPU 2 may cause the flow to return to step S103. Thismakes it possible to perform the course creation again from the settingof the via-points, in the case where the number of the course evaluationpoints Vc deviates from the value corresponding to the post-changediscovery gain because of the revision process of step S115, S118, orS121.

Meanwhile, in a case where the number of the course evaluation points Vctakes the value corresponding to the post-change discovery gain (Yes instep S136), the CPU 2 may cause the flow to proceed to step S138, toperform processing to provide the display of the trial course as theproposed course Cc for the route guidance. Thus, in the confirmationdisplay screen G1′, the proposed course Cc is displayed that correspondsto the value of the post-change discovery gain and satisfies theconditions of the requisite spots.

In response to the execution of the process of step S138, the CPU 2 maycause the flow to return to step S130 illustrated in FIG. 13, to be onstandby again for either the operation of changing the discovery gain orthe operation on the decide button B1. In the case with the presence ofthe operation of changing the discovery gain (Yes in step S130), the CPU2 may execute the processes of steps S132 to S138, to switch the courseto be displayed on the confirmation display screen G1′ from the proposedcourse Cc corresponding to the pre-change value of the discovery gain tothe proposed course Cc corresponding to the post-change value of thediscovery gain. Meanwhile, in the case with the presence of theoperation on the decide button B1 (Yes in step S131) the CPU 2 mayexecute the process of step S139, to set the proposed course Cc ondisplay on the confirmation display screen G1′ as the guidance courseCg.

In response to the execution of the process of step S139, the CPU 2 mayterminate the series of processing illustrated in FIGS. 13 and 14.

It is to be noted that in the forgoing, given is an example where theefficiency-oriented course is created, in the case where the discoverygain is equal to zero (=0). In one alternative, even in the case wherethe discovery gain is equal to zero (=0), a course may be created on thebasis of the number of the course evaluation points Vc corresponding tothe discovery gain, as with the case where the discovery gain takesother values.

Moreover, in the forgoing, given is an example where no condition of therequisite spot is imposed, in the case where the discovery gain is equalto zero (=0), or takes a minimum value (steps S132, S137, and S138). Inthis case as well, the CPU 2 may execute the process of steps S110 toS136, with the condition of the requisite spot imposed.

(2-3. Regarding Via-Point Customization)

In this example, the operation on the customize button B3 as illustratedin FIGS. 11 and 12 makes it possible to customize the via-points on theproposed course Cc.

With reference to FIGS. 15A and 15B, and 16A to 16C, description isgiven of examples of screen transitions regarding via-pointcustomization.

FIG. 15A illustrates an example of a via-point list screen G2. Thevia-point list screen G2 may be displayed on the display unit 7 inresponse to the operation on the customize button B3 on the confirmationdisplay screen G1′.

As illustrated in the figure, the via-point list screen G2 may include avia-point display region Ac, together with the map display region Am.The map display region Am may provide the display of the proposed courseCc. The via-point display region Ac may provide list display of thevia-points on the proposed course Cc. If the user is interested inchanging any one of the via-points on the proposed course Cc, thevia-point list screen G2 may allow the user to make an operation, e.g.,a touching operation, to select the relevant via-point from thevia-points displayed in the via-point display region Ac. In the figure,an example case is illustrated where the operation of selecting thethird via-point, “Mt. Omuro” has been made.

The via-point list screen G2 may include a complete button B4, allowingthe user to make an operation to give an instruction to complete thevia-point customization to the information processor 1, or the CPU 2. Ina case with the operation on the complete button B4, the screen displayof the display unit 7 is restored to the display of the confirmationdisplay screen G1′.

Upon the selection of the via-point from the list in the via-pointdisplay region Ac, the display unit 7 may provide display of a via-pointdetail screen G3 as illustrated in FIG. 15B. In the via-point detailscreen G3, detailed information regarding the via-point selected may bedisplayed, e.g., a name and an image of the via-point, presence orabsence of a parking lot, presence or absence of a rest room, and thepositional information on the map. The via-point detail screen G3 mayfurther include a change instruction button B5 and a return button B6.

In a case where the user is interested in making a change from thevia-point the detailed information of which is displayed in thevia-point detail screen G3, i.e., the via-point selected by the userthemselves on the via-point list screen G2, to another via-point, thechange instruction button B5 may allow the user to make an operation tomake such a change. Moreover, in a case where the user is interested inchecking details of another via-point, the return button B6 may allowthe user to make an operation to return to the via-point list screen G2illustrated in FIG. 15A.

FIG. 16A illustrates an example of a via-point selection screen G4. Thevia-point selection screen G4 may be displayed on the display unit 7 inresponse to the operation on the change instruction button B5.

The via-point selection screen G4 may provide list display of thevia-points available for a change. In the via-point selection screen G4in this example, the via-points available for the change may be offeredin the form of the list display sorted in accordance with a spacingdistance from the pre-change via-point, i.e., the via-point subject tothe instruction to change to another via-point. Specifically, in thisexample, the list display of the via-points available for the change maybe provided, for example, in the following order: the via-points within5 kilometer radius of the pre-change via-point, and the via-pointswithin 10 kilometer radius of the pre-change via-point.

The via-point selection screen G4 may further include a cancel buttonB7. The cancel button B7 may allow the user to make an operation torestore the screen display of the display unit 7 to the via-point detailscreen G3.

In a case where the user is interested in changing any one of the listedvia-points, the via-point selection screen G4 may allow the user to makean operation to select the relevant via-point. In the figure, an exampleis illustrated where the via-point “Hashidate Suspension Bridge” hasbeen selected.

FIG. 16B illustrates an example of a change confirmation screen G5. Thechange confirmation screen G5 may be displayed on the display unit 7 inresponse to the selection of the via-point on the via-point selectionscreen G4.

In the change confirmation screen G5, detailed information of thevia-point selected on the via-point selection screen G4 may bedisplayed. The change confirmation screen G5 may include a changesetting button B8 and a return button B9. The change confirmation screenG5 may allow the user to make an operation on the change setting buttonB8 to give the CPU 2 of the information processor 1 an instruction tomake a change from the via-point “Mt. Omuro” to the via-point “HashidateSuspension Bridge”. The instruction to make the change from thevia-point “Mt. Omuro” is given with the use of the change instructionbutton B5 of the via-point detail screen G3 illustrated in FIG. 15B. Thedetailed information of the via-point “Hashidate Suspension Bridge” isdisplayed on the change confirmation screen G5.

In a case where the user is interested in selecting again the via-pointto which the change is to be made, the change confirmation screen G5 mayallow the user to make an operation on the return button B9 to restorethe screen display of the display unit 7 to the via-point selectionscreen G4.

In response to the operation on the change setting button B8 on thechange confirmation screen G5, the CPU 2 may create a course on whichthe relevant via-point on the proposed course Cc is changed to thedesignated via-point. In this case, the CPU 2 may create a course onwhich the third via-point is changed to “Hashidate Suspension Bridge”.In response to the creation of the course with the change in thevia-point, the CPU 2 may perform a control of allowing the display unit7 to provide the display of the via-point list screen G2, with thecreated course displayed in the map display region Am.

FIG. 16C illustrates an example of the via-point list screen G2 thatprovides the display of the course after the change in the via-point asdescribed above. In this case, in the via-point display region Ac, thethird via-point is changed from “Mt. Omuro” to “Hashidate SuspensionBridge”. That is, the contents of the display in the via-point displayregion Ac is also updated to the contents corresponding to the change inthe via-point.

As described above, the via-point list screen G2 may include thecomplete button B4. In a case with an operation on the complete buttonB4, the screen display of the display unit 7 may be restored to thedisplay of the confirmation display screen G1′. Hence, after the changein the via-point, it is possible for the user to make the operation onthe decide button B1 on the confirmation display screen G1′, to give theCPU 2 an instruction to set the course after the change in the via-pointas the guidance course Cg.

It is to be noted that, as to the course on which the via-point has beenchanged by the customization as described above, the course evaluationpoints Vc may be calculated, and the course may be revised in accordancewith the calculated course evaluation points Vc. In one specific butnon-limiting example, in a case where the number of the calculatedcourse evaluation points Vc is smaller than a predetermined referencevalue, the course may be revised to satisfy the reference value. Thereference value may be, for example, the value of the discovery gaindesignated.

Moreover, in a case where the course on which the via-point has beenchanged fails to satisfy the condition of the requisite spot, the coursemay be revised to satisfy the condition.

(2-4. Modification Examples of Second Embodiment)

In the forgoing description, as an example of creating and displayingthe proposed course Cc corresponding to the designated discovery gain,the following example is given. First, the processing illustrated inFIGS. 4 and 5 may be executed to create and display the proposed courseCc corresponding to the discovery gain being equal to 3 (=3), i.e., amaximum value. Thereafter, in response to the operation of designatingthe discovery gain with the use of the slide bar B2, the proposed courseCc corresponding to the designated discovery gain. However, the exampleof creating and displaying the proposed course Cc corresponding to thedesignated discovery gain is not limited thereto.

An example flow may be as follows. First, in response to an input ofnecessary information for the course creation, e.g., the informationregarding the starting point and the destination point, the display unit7 may be allowed to display a GUI for the operation of designating thediscovery gain, e.g., the slide bar B2. Thereafter, in response to theoperation of designating the discovery gain on the screen on which sucha GUI is displayed, the proposed course Cc corresponding to thedesignated discovery gain may be created and displayed. That is, theprocessing illustrated in FIGS. 13 and 14 may be performed. At thisoccasion, in displaying the proposed course Cc corresponding to thedesignated discovery gain, a GUI for the operation of designating thediscovery gain, e.g., the slide bar B2, may be displayed on the samescreen. The GUI for the operation of designating the discovery gain isalso referred to as the indicator of the discovery gain. In a case wherethe operation of changing the discovery gain is made, the proposedcourse Cc corresponding to the post-change discovery gain may be createdand displayed.

Furthermore, in the forgoing, an example is given in which only thesingle proposed course Cc is displayed on the screen of the display unit7. In one alternative, as illustrated in FIG. 17, a plurality of theproposed courses Cc may be displayed on the same screen, allowing theuser to select the guidance course Cg from among the proposed coursesCc. At this occasion, on the screen, the plurality of the proposedcourses Cc may be displayed that are created with respectively differentvalues of the discovery gain, e.g., “3”, “2”, “1”, and “0”, as targetvalues. Moreover, gain display regions A1 may be provided for respectiveones of the proposed courses Cc. An indicator of the correspondingdiscovery gain, i.e., the discovery gain as the target values in thecourse creation, may be displayed for each of the gain display regionsA1. At this occasion, the indicator of the discovery gain is not limitedto the display of the GUI that allows for the operation of thedesignation, e.g., the slide bar B2. It suffices to display at leastinformation that allows the user to recognize the value of the discoverygain. Non-limiting example of such information may include numericalinformation indicating the value of the discovery gain, and informationobtained by plotting the numerical value of the discovery gain. In thiscase, the operation of selecting the guidance course Cg may be, forexample, an operation on the decide button B1 displayed for each of theproposed courses Cc.

As described above, displaying the indicator of the discovery gaincorresponding to each of the proposed courses Cc as described abovemakes it possible for the user to easily grasp the features of each ofthe proposed courses Cc from the viewpoint of the discovery gain. Thismakes it easier to select the guidance course Cg.

3. Modification Examples of Embodiments

In the forgoing description, the evaluation criterion of the routes andthe courses is exemplified by the evaluation criterion including factorssuch as a mountain path, a winding road, a gravel road, and a bumpyroad, without limitation. Refer to FIGS. 6A and 6B. These factors suchas a mountain path, a winding road, a gravel road, and a bumpy road,without limitation, are also referred to as a road that is able to givethe user great experience, e.g., the joy and the pleasure of travel.Such great experience is derived from traveling by a vehicle havingspecific characteristics, i.e., a vehicle having excellent kineticperformance. Accordingly, the forgoing evaluation criterion includingthe factors such as a mountain path, a winding road, a gravel road, anda bumpy road, without limitation, may serve as an embodiment of anevaluation criterion determined in accordance with a characteristic of avehicle.

However, the evaluation criterion in accordance with the characteristicof the vehicle is not limited to the use of the fixed evaluationcriterion corresponding to the vehicle having the specificcharacteristics as described above.

For example, the information processor 1 is configured to accept settingof information regarding a body type of the vehicle and informationregarding an individual vehicle model. Thus, the information processor 1is configured to calculate evaluation points of the routes and thecourses under different evaluation criteria in accordance with theinformation regarding, for example, the vehicle model thus set. Forexample, a sports sedan is able to enjoy a mountain path or a windingroad, while a minivan is able to enjoy a flatter and more scenic roadrather than a mountain path, etc. Accordingly, for the former vehiclemodel, an evaluation criterion may be used under which the greaternumber of evaluation points is obtained as a ratio of a mountain pathand a winding road is higher. For the latter vehicle model, anevaluation criterion may be used under which the greater number ofevaluation points is obtained as a ratio of a flat road and a road of acertain width or more is higher.

In the forgoing description, an example is given where the coursecreation unit 25 and the course evaluation unit 26 are provided in theinformation processor 1 including the display unit 7, i.e., a displaydevice, the display controller 30, and the guidance course setting unit31. The course creation unit 25 performs the course creation. The courseevaluation unit 26 may calculate the course evaluation points. However,the course creation unit 25 and the course evaluation unit 26 may beprovided in a separate device from a device including the display unit7, the display controller 30, and the guidance course setting unit 31.In this case, a possible configuration may be as follows. For example,the server 42 may include the course creation unit 25 and the courseevaluation unit 26. The server 42 may transmit, to the informationprocessor 1, information regarding the course created and informationregarding the course evaluation points Vc calculated for the relevantcourse. On the basis of the information thus transmitted, theinformation processor 1 may allow the display controller 30 to providedisplay of the course and the indicator of the course evaluation pointsVc on the screen of the display unit 7. Furthermore, the guidance coursesetting unit 31 may set the course displayed on the screen as the coursefor the route guidance, on the basis of the user's operation.

With such a configuration, it is unnecessary to impose a processing loadrelating to the course creation and the calculation of the courseevaluation points Vc on the information processor 1 as a user terminalsuch as a smartphone. This makes it possible to use a wider range ofuser terminals as the information processor 1.

4. Programs

In the forgoing, description is given of the information processor 1according to the embodiments of the technology. Programs according toembodiments of the technology are programs that cause a computer device(an information processor) such as a CPU to execute processing as theinformation processor 1.

First and second programs according to the embodiments of the technologyare programs that cause the information processor to execute theprocessing as illustrated in, for example, FIGS. 4 and 5.

The first program according to the embodiment of the technology causesthe information processor to execute processing including: calculatingroute evaluation points for each of proposed routes in each of segments,on the basis of a condition of a road in the relevant one of theproposed routes, the segments being coupled between respective twonearest neighbors of a sequence from a starting point to a destinationpoint through one or more via-points; selecting, on the basis of theroute evaluation points, one proposed route from the proposed routes foreach of the segments; and connecting the proposed routes selected by theselecting, to create a course from the starting point to the destinationpoint.

The second program according to the embodiment of the technology causesthe information processor to execute processing including: setting astarting point, one or more via-points, and a destination point;creating a course serially coupled between the starting point, the oneor more via-points, and the destination point set by the setting;calculating course evaluation points based on a predetermined evaluationcriterion, with respect to the course created in the creating; andsetting the course as a proposed course for route guidance, on the basisof the course evaluation points.

A third program according to an embodiment of the technology is aprogram that causes the information processor to execute the processingas illustrated in, for example, FIGS. 13 and 14.

The third program according to the embodiment of the technology causesthe information processor to execute processing including: calculatingcourse evaluation points based on a predetermined evaluation criterion,with respect to a course serially coupled and created between a startingpoint, one or more via-points, and a destination point; providingdisplay of the course and an indicator of the course evaluation pointson a same screen; and setting the course displayed on the screen as acourse for route guidance on a basis of an operation by a user.

With such programs, it is possible to implement the above-describedinformation processor 1 in, for example, a portable terminal device suchas a smartphone and a tablet apparatus, a personal computer, or anyother apparatus that is able to execute information processing.

The program that implements such an information processor 1 may be heldin advance in, for example, an HDD as a recording medium incorporated inan apparatus such as a computer device, or a ROM in a microcomputerincluding a CPU. Alternatively, the program may be temporarily orpermanently held, or recorded, in a removable recording medium such as adisk recording medium, a card type recording medium, or a stick typerecording medium. In another alternative, the program may be installedin the information processor 1 from a removable recording medium, or maybe downloaded through the network 41.

5. Conclusion of Embodiments

As described, a first information processor according to an embodimentof the technology (the information processor 1) includes a routeevaluation unit (the route evaluation unit 23), a route selection unit(the route selection unit 24), and a course creation unit (the coursecreation unit 25). The route evaluation unit is configured to calculateroute evaluation points for each of proposed routes in each of segments,on the basis of a condition of a road in the relevant one of theproposed routes. The segments are coupled between respective two nearestneighbors of a sequence from a starting point to a destination pointthrough one or more via-points. The route selection unit is configuredto select, on the basis of the route evaluation points, one proposedroute from the proposed routes for each of the segments. The coursecreation unit is configured to connect the proposed routes selected bythe route selection unit, to create a course from the starting point tothe destination point.

This renders it unnecessary to evaluate all combinations of the proposedroutes assumed in the respective segments from the starting point to thedestination point, in creating the course that satisfies a predeterminedevaluation criterion based on the condition of the road.

Hence, it is possible to effectively create an appropriate course thatmatches the condition of the road, as the course from the starting pointto the destination point through the one or more via-points.

In the forgoing first information processor, the route selection unitmay select one proposed route from the proposed routes for each of thesegments, on the basis of the number of the route evaluation points. Forexample, the route selection unit may select, from the proposed routesfor each of the segments, whichever proposed route has the greatestnumber of the route evaluation points.

This makes it possible to create the course that satisfies, at themaximum, the evaluation criterion based on the condition of the road.

Hence, it is possible to create a course of quality as high as possiblein view of a degree of matching the evaluation criterion based on thecondition of the road.

In the forgoing first information processor, the condition of the roadmay include a position of the road, a feature of the road, the weatheron the road, or public reputation of the road, or any combinationthereof.

For example, the condition of the road including the position of theroad or the feature of the road, or both, makes it possible to allow theevaluation criterion to include factors such as whether or not the roadon the course includes, for example: a mountain path or a winding road;a bumpy road; a gravel road; a tunnel; or a road in a forest. In otherwords, it is possible to allow the evaluation criterion to includefactors such as presence or absence of, for example: a road that allowsfor the fully appreciation of the joy and the pleasure of travel; a roadthat allows for the fully appreciation of the kinematic performance ofthe vehicle, e.g., the power performance and the suspension performance;and/or a road that evokes the sense of adventure.

In a case with the evaluation criterion including the weather on theroad, it is possible to incorporate, in the evaluation criterion, afactor such as the pleasure of travel.

In a case with the evaluation criterion including the public reputationof the road, it is possible to incorporate, in the evaluation criterion,a factor such as whether or not the road is well-reputed among, forexample, remarks on the Internet.

Hence, it is possible to create a user-experience-oriented course inview of the fully appreciation of the joy and the pleasure of travel,the fully appreciation of the kinematic performance of the vehicle,and/or the evocation of the sense of adventure.

In the forgoing first information processor, necessary time for each ofthe proposed routes in a corresponding one of the segments may beshorter than predetermined time.

This makes it possible to prevent creation of an unpractical coursehaving excessively long necessary time.

Hence, it is possible to perform well-balanced course creation ofsatisfying the condition of the road versus being practical.

In the forgoing first information processor, the course creation unit isconfigured to create a different course from a distance-oriented ornecessary-time-oriented course. This makes it possible to preventcreation of the same course as an efficiency-oriented course such as thedistance-oriented or necessary-time-oriented course.

Hence, it is possible to create not the efficiency-oriented course butan appropriate, user-experience-oriented course.

The forgoing first information processor may further include anacquisition unit (the acquisition unit 21) and a via-point setting unit(the via-point setting unit 22 a). The acquisition unit is configured toacquire proposed via-points for the one or more via-points. Thevia-point setting unit is configured to set at least one of the proposedvia-points acquired by the acquisition unit, as the one or morevia-points to be used in creating the course.

This makes it possible to set at least one selected from the proposedvia-points, as the one or more via-points.

Hence, it is possible to enhance flexibility of the course creation.

The forgoing first information processor may further include adetermination unit (the determination unit 27) and a course setting unit(the course setting unit 28). The determination unit 27 is configured tomake a determination as to whether or not the course created by thecourse creation unit satisfies a predetermined condition other than acondition based on the route evaluation points. The course setting unitis configured to set the course created by the course creation unit as aproposed course for route guidance, on the condition that thedetermination unit determines that the course created by the coursecreation unit satisfies the predetermined condition.

This allows the condition for the setting of the proposed course for theroute guidance to include the condition other than the condition basedon the route evaluation points, e.g., the presence of indispensablefacilities such as a rest room on the course.

Hence, it is possible to set, as the proposed course for the routeguidance, the course that satisfies the necessary condition other thanthe condition based on the route evaluation points.

In the forgoing first information processor, the determination unit maydetermine whether or not the course created by the course creation unitincludes a requisite place to be included in the course, as thedetermination as to whether or not the course created by the coursecreation unit satisfies the predetermined condition.

This allows the condition for the setting of the proposed course for theroute guidance to include the condition that the course includes therequisite place to be included in the course, e.g., facilities such as arest room.

Hence, it is possible to set, as the proposed course for the routeguidance, the course that satisfies the condition that the courseincludes the requisite place. This leads to the well-balanced coursecreation of satisfying the condition of the road versus being practical.

A first information processing method according to an embodiment of thetechnology includes: calculating route evaluation points for each ofproposed routes in each of segments, on the basis of a condition of aroad in the relevant one of the proposed routes, the segments beingcoupled between respective two nearest neighbors of a sequence from astarting point to a destination point through one or more via-points;selecting, on the basis of the route evaluation points, one proposedroute from the proposed routes for each of the segments; and connectingthe proposed routes selected by the selecting, to create a course fromthe starting point to the destination point.

With such a first information processing method as well, it is possibleto produce similar workings and effects to those of the forgoing firstinformation processor.

A second information processor according to an embodiment of thetechnology (the information processor 1) includes a setting unit (thesetting unit 22), a course creation unit (the course creation unit 25),a course evaluation unit (the course evaluation unit 26), and a coursesetting unit (the course setting unit 28). The setting unit isconfigured to set a starting point, one or more via-points, and adestination point. The course creation unit is configured to create acourse serially coupled between the starting point, the one or morevia-points, and the destination point set by the setting unit. Thecourse evaluation unit is configured to calculate course evaluationpoints based on a predetermined evaluation criterion, with respect tothe course created by the course creation unit. The course setting unitis configured to set the course as a proposed course for route guidance,on the basis of the course evaluation points.

This allows the proposed course for the route guidance to be set on thebasis of the course evaluation points calculated under the predeterminedevaluation criterion with respect to the course created.

Hence, it is possible to set, as the proposed course for the routeguidance, the appropriate course from the starting point to thedestination point through the one or more via-points, in conformity withthe predetermined evaluation criterion such as the joy of travel and thefine scenery.

In the forgoing second information processor, the course setting unitmay revise the course regarding which a determination is made that thenumber of the course evaluation points is smaller than a predeterminedreference value.

This makes it possible to prevent the course that fails to satisfy apredetermined criterion in terms of the course evaluation points, frombeing set as the proposed course for the route guidance.

Hence, it is possible to allow the appropriate course to be set as theproposed course for the route guidance.

The forgoing second information processor may further include adetermination unit (the determination unit 27). The determination unitmay determine whether or not the course created by the course creationunit includes a predetermined requisite point or facilities to beincluded in the course. On the condition that the determination unitdetermines that the course includes the requisite point or facilities,the course setting unit may set the course as the proposed course.

This allows the condition for the setting of the proposed course for theroute guidance to include the condition that the course includes therequisite point or facilities to be included in the course, e.g.,facilities such as a rest room.

Hence, it is possible to set, as the proposed course for the routeguidance, the course that satisfies the condition that the courseincludes the requisite point or facilities, leading to the well-balancedcourse creation of satisfying the predetermined evaluation criterionsuch as the joy of travel and the fine scenery versus being practical.

In the forgoing second information processor, as to some of therequisite point or facilities, the determination unit may determinewhether or not the course includes the relevant requisite point orfacilities, on the condition that the necessary time for the course isequal to or longer than predetermined time. The necessary time for thecourse may be necessary time for travel from the starting point to thedestination point.

Some of the requisite point or facilities may sometimes include a pointor facilities, e.g., a rest room, the setting of which is unnecessaryinsofar as the necessary time ranges within a certain period of time.With the forgoing configuration, it is possible to prevent the conditionof the setting of the course from including the condition that thecourse includes such requisite point or facilities, regardless of theshort necessary time for the course.

Hence, it is possible to provide appropriate course setting.

The forgoing second information processor may further include a routeevaluation unit (the route evaluation unit 23), and a route selectionunit (the route selection unit 24). The route evaluation unit isconfigured to calculate route evaluation points for each of proposedroutes in each of segments, on the basis of a condition of a road in therelevant one of the proposed routes. The segments are coupled betweenrespective two nearest neighbors of a sequence from the starting pointto the destination point through the one or more via-points. The routeselection unit is configured to select, on the basis of the routeevaluation points, one proposed route from the proposed routes for eachof the segments. The course creation unit is configured to connect theproposed routes selected by the route selection unit, to create thecourse.

This renders it unnecessary to evaluate all the combinations of theproposed routes assumed in the respective segments from the startingpoint to the destination point, in creating the course that satisfiesthe predetermined evaluation criterion based on the condition of theroad in view of, for example, the joy of travel and fine scenery.

Hence, it is possible to effectively create an appropriate course thatmatches the condition of the road, as the course from the starting pointto the destination point through the one or more via-points.

In the forgoing second information processor, the condition of the roadmay include a position of the road, a feature of the road, the weatheron the road, or public reputation of the road, or any combinationthereof.

For example, the condition of the road including the position of theroad or the feature of the road, or both, makes it possible to allow theevaluation criterion to include factors such as whether or not the roadon the course includes, for example: a mountain path or a winding road;a bumpy road; a gravel road; a tunnel; or a road in a forest. In otherwords, it is possible to allow the evaluation criterion to includefactors such as presence or absence of, for example: a road that allowsfor the fully appreciation of the joy and the pleasure of travel; a roadthat allows for the fully appreciation of the kinematic performance ofthe vehicle, e.g., the power performance and the suspension performance;and/or a road that evokes the sense of adventure.

In a case with the evaluation criterion including the weather on theroad, it is possible to incorporate, in the evaluation criterion, afactor such as the pleasure of travel.

In a case with the evaluation criterion including the public reputationof the road, it is possible to incorporate, in the evaluation criterion,a factor such as whether or not the road is well-reputed among, forexample, remarks on the Internet.

Hence, it is possible to create the user-experience-oriented course inview of the fully appreciation of the joy and the pleasure of travel,the fully appreciation of the kinematic performance of the vehicle,and/or the evocation of the sense of adventure.

A second information processing method according to an embodiment of thetechnology includes: setting a starting point, one or more via-points,and a destination point; creating a course serially coupled between thestarting point, the one or more via-points, and the destination pointset by the setting; calculating course evaluation points based on apredetermined evaluation criterion, with respect to the course createdin the creating; and setting the course as a proposed course for routeguidance, on the basis of the course evaluation points.

With such a second information processing method as well, it is possibleto produce similar workings and effects to those of the forgoing secondinformation processor.

A third information processor according to an embodiment of thetechnology (the information processor 1) includes a course evaluationunit (the course evaluation unit 26), a display controller (the displaycontroller 30), and a guidance course setting unit (the guidance coursesetting unit 31). The course evaluation unit is configured to calculatecourse evaluation points based on a predetermined evaluation criterion,with respect to a course serially coupled and created between a startingpoint, one or more via-points, and a destination point. The displaycontroller is configured to provide display of the course and anindicator of the course evaluation points on a same screen. The guidancecourse setting unit is configured to set the course displayed on thescreen as a course for route guidance on the basis of an operation by auser.

As described above, displaying the course and the indicator of thecourse evaluation points on the same screen makes it possible for theuser to check the course evaluation points and to make an operation ofdesignating the course for the route guidance.

Hence, it is possible to allow the user to appropriately designate thecourse having the desired course evaluation points as the course for theroute guidance, with respect to the course from the starting point tothe destination point through the one or more via-points.

In the forgoing third information processor, in response to the user'soperation of designating the course evaluation points, the displaycontroller provides display of the course corresponding to the courseevaluation points designated by the operation of the designation.

This makes it unnecessary for the user themselves to perform courseedition such as the selection of the via-point and a settinginstruction, in a case where the user is interested in checking thecourse having the desired evaluation points on the screen. It sufficesfor the user to make an operation of designating the desired evaluationpoints.

Hence, it is possible to reduce a burden of the operation on the user.

In the forgoing third information processor, the display controller mayprovide display of a graphical user interface that allows the user tomake an operation to designate the course evaluation points, as theindicator of the course evaluation points.

This makes it possible for the user to designate the desired evaluationpoints with an intuitive and easy operation.

Hence, it is possible to enhance operation-related user-friendliness.

The forgoing third information processor may further include a coursecreation unit (the course creation unit 25). The course creation unitmay create a course corresponding to post-change course evaluationpoints, in response to an operation of changing the course evaluationpoints displayed on the screen. On the condition that the operation ismade to change the course evaluation points, the display controller mayperform a display control to switch a course to be displayed on thescreen from the course corresponding to the pre-change course evaluationpoints to the course corresponding to the post-change course evaluationpoints.

This causes the course to be displayed on the screen to be switched tothe course corresponding to the post-change evaluation points, inassociation with the operation of changing the course evaluation pointsdisplayed on the screen.

Hence, it is possible to give the user an intuitive grasp of a change incontents of the course in accordance with the change in the courseevaluation points.

In the forgoing third information processor, the course evaluation unitmay calculate, as the course evaluation points, evaluation points basedon an evaluation criterion determined in accordance with acharacteristic of a vehicle the user is aboard during the routeguidance.

The evaluation criterion determined in accordance with thecharacteristic of the vehicle is exemplified by an evaluation criterionincluding factors such as a mountain path, a winding road, a gravelroad, and a bumpy road, without limitation. These factors such as amountain path, a winding road, a gravel road, and a bumpy road, withoutlimitation, are also referred to as a road that is able to give the usergreat experience, e.g., the joy and the pleasure of travel. Such greatexperience is derived from traveling by a vehicle having specificcharacteristics, i.e., a vehicle having excellent kinetic performancesuch as power performance and suspension performance. Accordingly, theforgoing evaluation criterion including the factors such as a mountainpath, a winding road, a gravel road, and a bumpy road, withoutlimitation, may serve as an embodiment of the evaluation criteriondetermined in accordance with the characteristic of the vehicle.

Calculating the evaluation points based on the evaluation criteriondetermined in accordance with the characteristic of the vehicle makes itpossible to set the user-experience-oriented course in view of the fullyappreciation of the joy and the pleasure of travel, the fullyappreciation of the kinematic performance of the vehicle, and/or theevocation of the sense of adventure.

A third information processing method according to an embodiment of thetechnology includes: calculating course evaluation points based on apredetermined evaluation criterion, with respect to a course seriallycoupled and created between a starting point, one or more via-points,and a destination point; providing display of the course and anindicator of the course evaluation points on a same screen; and settingthe course displayed on the screen as a course for route guidance on thebasis of an operation by a user.

With such a third information processing method as well, it is possibleto produce similar workings and effects to those of the forgoing thirdinformation processor.

An information processing system according to an embodiment of thetechnology includes a server device (the server 42) and a display device(the information processor 1). The server device includes a courseevaluation unit (the course evaluation unit 26) and a transmission unit.The course evaluation unit is configured to calculate course evaluationpoints based on a predetermined evaluation criterion, with respect to acourse serially coupled and created between a starting point, one ormore via-points, and a destination point. The transmission unit isconfigured to transmit, to the display device, information regarding thecourse and information regarding the course evaluation points. Thedisplay device includes a display controller (the display controller 30)and a guidance course setting unit (the guidance course setting unit28). The display controller is configured to provide display of thecourse and an indicator of the course evaluation points on a screen, onthe basis of the information transmitted by the transmission unit. Theguidance course setting unit is configured to set the course displayedon the screen as a course for route guidance on the basis of anoperation by a user.

With such an information processing system as well, it is possible toproduce similar workings and effects as those of the forgoing thirdinformation processor.

The CPU 2 illustrated in FIG. 1 is implementable by circuitry includingat least one semiconductor integrated circuit such as at least oneprocessor (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU)), at least oneapplication specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and/or at least onefield programmable gate array (FPGA). At least one processor isconfigurable, by reading instructions from at least one machine readablenon-transitory tangible medium, to perform all or a part of functions ofthe CPU 2. Such a medium may take many forms, including, but not limitedto, any type of magnetic medium such as a hard disk, any type of opticalmedium such as a CD and a DVD, any type of semiconductor memory (i.e.,semiconductor circuit) such as a volatile memory and a non-volatilememory. The volatile memory may include a DRAM and a SRAM, and thenonvolatile memory may include a ROM and a NVRAM. The ASIC is anintegrated circuit (IC) customized to perform, and the FPGA is anintegrated circuit designed to be configured after manufacturing inorder to perform, all or a part of the functions of the CPU 2illustrated in FIG. 1.

Although some preferred but non-limiting embodiments of the technologyare described above by way of example with reference to the accompanyingdrawings, the technology is by no means limited to the embodimentsdescribed above. It should be appreciated that modifications andalterations may be made by persons skilled in the art without departingfrom the scope as defined by the appended claims. The use of the termsfirst, second, etc. does not denote any order or importance, but ratherthe terms first, second, etc. are used to distinguish one element fromanother. The technology is intended to include such modifications andalterations in so far as they fall within the scope of the appendedclaims or the equivalents thereof.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An information processor comprising aprocessor, and a memory storing instructions, when executed, causing theprocessor to perform as: a setting unit configured to set a courseincluding a starting point, a via-point, and a destination point,wherein the setting unit is configured to set first route candidates,different from each other, connecting between the starting point and thevia-point, and second route candidates, different from each other,connecting between the via-point and the destination point; a courseevaluation unit configured to evaluate the first route candidates andthe second route candidates based on road information of each routecandidate and road evaluation information, and assign first evaluationpoints to the first route candidates and the second route candidates,respectively, based on points associated with the road evaluationinformation; a route selection unit configured to select (1) one of thefirst route candidates as a first route, and (2) one of the second routecandidates as a second route, based on the first evaluation pointsassigned to each first route candidate and each second route candidate;a course setting unit configured to set a first course candidateincluding the first route and the second route, wherein the first coursecandidate has second evaluation points derived from the first evaluationpoints assigned to the selected one of the first route candidates andthe first evaluation points assigned to the selected one of the secondroute candidates; a display controller configured to control a displayscreen to show the first course candidate and an indicator indicatingthe second evaluation points; and a guidance course setting unitconfigured to set the first course candidate displayed on the displayscreen as a course for route guidance.
 2. The information processoraccording to claim 1, wherein in response to an instruction to adjustthe second evaluation points, the display controller is configured tocontrol the display screen to show a second course candidatecorresponding to the adjusted second evaluation points.
 3. Theinformation processor according to claim 2, wherein the indicator is agraphical user interface that receives an input to adjust the secondevaluation points.
 4. The information processor according to claim 2,the processor is caused to perform as a course creation unit configuredto create the second course candidate corresponding to the adjustedsecond evaluation points, in response to the instruction to adjust thesecond evaluation points, wherein in response to creating the secondcourse candidate by the course creating unit, the display controller isconfigured to control the display screen to switch from the first coursecandidate to the second course candidate.
 5. The information processoraccording to claim 3, the processor is caused to perform as a coursecreation unit configured to create the second course candidatecorresponding to the adjusted second evaluation points, in response tothe instruction to adjust the second evaluation points, wherein inresponse to creating the second course candidate by the course creatingunit, the display controller is configured to control the display screento switch from the first course candidate to the second coursecandidate.
 6. The information processor according to claim 1, whereinthe road evaluation information is determined in accordance with acharacteristic of a vehicle a user is aboard during the route guidance.7. The information processor according to claim 2, wherein the roadevaluation information is determined in accordance with a characteristicof a vehicle a is aboard during the route guidance.
 8. The informationprocessor according to claim 3, wherein the road evaluation informationis determined in accordance with a characteristic of a vehicle a isaboard during the route guidance.
 9. The information processor accordingto claim 4, wherein the road evaluation information is determined inaccordance with a characteristic of a vehicle a is aboard during theroute guidance.
 10. The information processor according to claim 5,wherein the road evaluation information is determined in accordance witha characteristic of a vehicle a is aboard during the route guidance. 11.An information processing method, comprising: setting a course includinga starting point, a via-point, and a destination point, wherein thesetting includes setting first route candidates, different from eachother, connecting between the starting point and the via-point, andsecond route candidates, different from each other, connecting betweenthe via-point and the destination point; evaluating the first routecandidates and the second route candidates based on road information ofeach route candidate and road evaluation information, and assigningfirst evaluation points to the first route candidates and the secondroute candidates, respectively, based on points associated with the roadevaluation information; selecting (1) one of the first route candidatesas a first route, and (2) one of the second route candidates as a secondroute based on the first evaluation points assigned to each first routecandidate and each second route candidate; setting a first coursecandidate including the first route and the second route, wherein thefirst course candidate has second evaluation points derived from thefirst evaluation points assigned to the selected one of the first routecandidates and the first evaluation points assigned to the selected oneof the second route candidates; controlling a display screen to show thefirst course candidate and an indicator indicating the second evaluationpoints; and setting the first course candidate displayed on the displayscreen as a course for route guidance.
 12. A non-transitorycomputer-readable recording medium containing a program, the programcausing, when executed by a computer, the computer to implement amethod, the method comprising: setting a course including a startingpoint, a via-point, and a destination point, wherein the settingincludes setting first route candidates, different from each other,connecting between the starting point and the via-point, and secondroute candidates, different from each other, connecting between thevia-point and the destination point; evaluating the first routecandidates and the second route candidates based on road information ofeach route candidate and road evaluation information, and assigningfirst evaluation points to the first route candidates and the secondroute candidates, respectively, based on points associated with the roadevaluation information; selecting (1) one of the first route candidatesas a first route, and (2) one of the second route candidates as a secondroute based on the first evaluation points assigned to each first routecandidate and each second route candidate; setting a first coursecandidate including the first route and the second route, wherein thefirst course candidate has second evaluation points derived from thefirst evaluation points assigned to the selected one of the first routecandidates and the first evaluation points assigned to the selected oneof the second route candidates; controlling a display screen to show thefirst course candidate and an indicator indicating the second evaluationpoints; and setting the first course candidate displayed on the displayscreen as a course for route guidance.
 13. An information processingsystem comprising: a server device; and a display device, the serverdevice including: a setting unit configured to set a course including astarting point, a via-point, and a destination point, wherein thesetting unit is configured to set first route candidates, different fromeach other, connecting between the starting point and the via-point, andsecond route candidates, different from each other, connecting betweenthe via-point and the destination point; a course evaluation unitconfigured to evaluate the first route candidates and the second routecandidates based on road information of each route candidate and roadevaluation information, and assign first evaluation points to the firstroute candidates and the second route candidates, respectively, based onpoints associated with the road evaluation information; a routeselection unit configured to select (1) one of the first routecandidates as a first route, and (2) one of the second route candidatesas a second route based on the first evaluation points assigned to eachfirst route candidate and each second route candidate; a course settingunit configured to set a first course candidate including the firstroute and the second route, wherein the first course candidate hassecond evaluation points derived from the first evaluation pointsassigned to the selected one of the first route candidates and the firstevaluation points assigned to the selected one of the second routecandidates; and a transmission unit configured to transmit, to thedisplay device, information regarding the first course candidate andinformation regarding the second evaluation points, and the displaydevice including: a display controller configured to control a displayscreen to show the first course candidate and an indicator indicatingthe second evaluation points, on a basis of the information transmittedby the transmission unit, and a guidance course setting unit configuredto set the first course candidate displayed on the display screen as acourse for route guidance.